The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-11-02
RAILROAD DISASTERS.


The Chatsworth disaster is now ancient
history. 1t came like an earthquake shock.
1t Mortified the country. There was some
sort of an investigations; the dead were
dug out from the ruins and buried; the
wounded, crushed and mutilated, were
cared for; some died. Some live; manned
for life. Live to tell the story of disaster
unparalleled in the history of railroading,
but the great msjority Of the people have
forgotten all about it. Other disasters, not
so extern sive, not quite so horrifying,
claim attention for day or two, and are
forgotten. The old system of negligence
prevails. Human life is cheap, and in a
population OF GO. 900, 600, the killing of a
few hundred is not matter of special i'm
portance to the great public or to the rail-
roads.
Our attention IS called to the Chats
worth calamity by an article in the Rail-
road Gazette. Tits lengthy article, but
not too lengthy. 1t is fruitful OF thought.
The writer is familiar with IailroadiDg.
The statement Is, 81 were killed, 80 were
wounded; total killed and wounded, 237.
The writer says: The daily press, as
usual, demand severe punishments, and
tell us just the remedy, but their sugzes-
tions are as impracticable as ever" The
daily press of the United States may make
impracticable suggestions. Newspaper
making is not railroading, and yet all the
great daily papers in the country devote
more or less space to railro ading, and en-
ploy special writers for that branch OF
journalism. But hitherto the suggestions
of the daily press, in most cases when a
railroad wreck was to be recorded, have
been regarded by railroad managers as
specially practicable. The press loaded
down with free passes, generally suggested
that nobody was to blame" except pos
slbly, Divine Providence; and as general
proposition, Divine Providence shouldered
all the responsibility, and there the matter
ended. at the funeral of the killed, miu-
listers would say, 'life is uncertain" "all
must die, "the Lord giveth, and the Lord
taketh away" etc. But great many peo-
pie have concluded to try their case in
court, and damages in large sums have
been awarded. The Divine Providence
theory cuts little figure in court, and the
very fact that railroads are responsible
when passengers are killed and wounded,
for large damages in dollars, is conclusive
that any suggestions of the daily press re-
lating to the prevention Of disasters (now
that free passes are largely done away
With may De practicable and of the high
est value to the travelling public.
We note with special interest the follow
ing suggestions OF the daily press as print
ed by the Gazette as impracticable. True,
they relate to the Chatsworth disaster on
the Toledo, Peoria and Western Railroad,
but have, nevertheless, wide application.
The Gazette says:
THEY (the daily press) want watchmen at
| all the bridges, but do not explain howa
road is to be made profitable with such an
expense item; they want iron bridges and
| stone culverts, bat have nothing to say on
the subject when praising @ road for re-
ducing its fares and giving benefits to the
| public they say this train should have
travelled more slowly, but cannot tell how
q road Is to comply with such a demand
when its competitor makes quicker time.
| They refer in scathing terms to the past
financial vicissitudes of tbs road, aud say
doubtless with Justice, that during its
connection with the Wabash system it was
managed so that its profits went into the
wrong pocket. And Jet the Toledo, Peoria
& Western is no worse and no better than
| numbers of other roads with thousands
OF miles of track. Most likely it is
fully up TO the average. II has wooden
bridges over short openings; but so have
! important trunk lines. 1t does not afford
night track walkers but neither do many
roads with twice or four times the bust
ness OF this one. 1t runs heavy cars AT
the rear of trains, and places the weaker
one Ia front, where the heavy ones can
crush them; but older aud larger roads
set the example. Itruns double headers
and leaves the forward engineman wholly
powerless to handle the train brake, in dis.
regard of the warning of the Carlyon acct
dent some years ago; but numbers OF
first class roads keep 1t company. II
runs trains in the blackness of night and
without these safeguards as fast as 1t would
in the brightness OF MONDAY; but what So.
perintendent has the courage to be so old
fogyish as to slacken speed at every cui-
Yert2
The reader will readily discover in thu
foregoing the impracticable suggestions o
the daily press, as also the running com
ments of the Gazette The daily pres
suggests "watchmen at all bridges"
suggests ''iron bridges and stone culyerts,
q slow speed in the dark where bridges ar
of wood and the culverts Of other materis
than stone. That the earnings Of road